Sharing the Limelight with Hollywood

South African show Drum Struck has shown its talent to the world as a finalist in the American Relly Awards.

The Relly Awards are a star-studded event, based on interviews on the hugely popular ‘Live with Regis and Kelly’, ABC’s top-rated morning TV show.

This, the third annual awards, continues tradition by presenting coveted golden stools for a variety of categories including Best Performance, Funniest Guest, Favourite Music Guest, Best Prop, Best Non-human Guest, Best Host Chat, Best Dance Partner, Best Reality Guest and Best Wild and Wacky. The winners were announced today, Friday 23 September, on a special show. ‘Drumstruck’ competed against world-class acts including Cirque du Soleil, Slava’s Snowshow and Johnny and the Cruisers, for Best Performance.

The honours were taken by Cirque du Soleil. Vivacious Drum Struck’ dancer, Tiny Modise from Soweto, was pitched against Richard Gere, John Travolta and Ashton Kutcher, amongst others, as a finalist for Best Dance Partner. The award went to John Travolta and Ashton Kutcher.

Modise started dancing with the Soweto Dance Theatre under the guidance of Jackie Semela and, in 2000, won Best Dancer award in Soweto’s Arts Alive competition. She joined the Drum Café in 2003 and is a feature performer in Drumstruck, having also toured with the hit show in Australia. She is also part of an all-woman drum, dance and marimba group, Basadi Le Meropa. South Africa’s latest musical export, ‘Drum Struck’, is taking New York audiences by storm – commanding standing ovations every evening.

Currently playing Off-Broadway at the Dodger Stages in New York, the show opened in mid May with an open season (to at least the end of the year). The show has been compared to ‘Stomp’, ‘The Lion King’ and ‘Cookin”, and the infectious beats and overwhelming urge to beat a convenient-placed drum has won over usually reserved Big Apple audiences.

Slick choreography (assisted by Johannesburg’s Moving into Dance) and inspired direction by seasoned Broadway director, David Warren, has ensured an outstanding show that’s a showcase of South African talent and culture. Sweet-voiced ‘SA Idols’ finalist, Ayanda, is a hot show favorite, as is vivacious dancer Tiny Modiseand drummers Nicholas ‘Africa’ Djanie and Enock Bafana Mahlangu. The cast has appeared live on numerous TV and radio shows, and in open-air venues and workshops beyond their Off-Broadway home. ‘Live with Regis and Kelly’ has been entertaining people every morning since 1989 (with Kelly Ripa since 2001). Dynamic hosts Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa conduct an energetic morning show, with a unique and massively popular stamp of spontaneous and enthusiastic daily chat sessions, phone-in contests and celebrity guests.